Last Full Year of Your Life

"What would you do if you only had a year left to live?" A solid question. A hearty question. I asked Bisque the other night. He told me he would travel to all seven continents with friends and family. That's a good answer.

It's strange that an answer doesn't come obviously to me. All the possibilities. Little time. What to do? It surprises me which things I have on my life plans that get knocked off immediately. International travel doesn't appeal to me without more years following to soak in the culture comparisons. Oddly enough the place I would most want to is probably Disney World. I just want to be happy and feel magic. I would visit important people in my life to enjoy some fond farewells. Would I see art and theatre? I don't think so. I MIGHT see something especially excellent, but for some reason final nights even in a Broadway theatre don't appeal to me. Movies certainly don't. I would write. A lot. I would probably write one or two books and a finish my screenplay and play I'm poking at lately. Writing would be my main squeeze.

I would definitely get fat. I would eat everything all the time. It would be actually ridiculous. I would probably make a can of Pillsbury cinnamon rolls every morning. And that's only the beginning.

I finally chose grad school my recognizing living abroad might be a stalling point (albeit a cool one) to get on the track I actually was hungry for. I asked myself the same question when I was accepted into The Program. "If I were to die in a year, would I be please with a year of teaching and waiting?" Probably not. I would have wished I just jumped and shipped myself off to Chicago.

We should not live like we're dying. I like my savings account and my health and my sturdy relationships. But, if you did die in a year, would you be pleased with how you spent this final one?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, POOKIE!

May 2011.

Today is my sister's birthday. I love my sister a whole lot. She makes me really happy for a lot of reasons, but I will compose a partial list about her past year of life:

-Pookie made me so many desserts last year. It's unreal. Cookies, pie, even non-dairy/egg treats during my Vegan April. Desserts are the fastest way to my heart--figuratively and literally. <3s for Pooks.
-She let me be a complete slug on her couch when I needed a week to get over a break-up. I wore the same button-down shirt and red running shorts for literally eight days. She cooked for me and rubbed my back.
-She drove my lame booty to musical rehearsals sometimes.
-We watched a lot of good and bad movies and TV last year. It was all enjoyable because we were together!
-She made a lot of really cool videos for work. She's really good at her job.
-She's REALLY REALLY FUNNY. Like, I ALWAYS LAUGH WITH POOKIE.
-Pookie places a high importance on fun stuff. We realize often that if something fun is happening Pookie will say, "Yes!" and I will already be halfway out the door, trying to run away. But, a lot of the time, at the end of everything, I am glad my sister made me be fun with her.
-Last year was such a gift--just being able to go to the gym together, catch a movie, grab a milkshake mid-day--I honestly feel blessed.

Happy Birthday, Pookie.